Burbank: Starlight Bowl roof damaged by January storm; concerts moved to parks and Fourth of July drone show planned

Parks and Recreation Director Marissa Garcia told the Burbank Parks and Recreation Board on Feb. 13 that the Starlight Bowl sustained significant damage during the Jan. 7 windstorm and that the roof must be replaced.

Garcia said public works is completing a full evaluation to develop a scope of repairs, but that the department does not expect to finish repairs in time for the summer Starlight Bowl concert season. "We won't have sufficient time to make the repairs in time for this summer Starlight concert season," Garcia said on the record.

As an alternative, staff said they are planning a summer series of concerts in city parks and will present more details when planning is finalized. The department also said it will replace the Starlight Bowl's July Fourth fireworks and concert format this year with a drone show, given the venue's outage.

Why it matters The Starlight Bowl has been a long-standing summer venue for larger concerts; staff noted a sold-out Starlight Bowl could host about 4,000 people. The department said it wants to avoid concentrating large crowds in neighborhood parks and will balance programming between local and larger performers.

Questions from the board and next steps Board members questioned whether park concerts would skew toward local performers because of scale and crowd management. Garcia said it is too early to name specific acts but said staff aims for a mix: "It's gonna be a balance...we're gonna be looking at how we can offer our community a diverse array of entertainment, different price ranges."

Public works will complete the damage assessment and produce a scope of work for roof replacement and related repairs. The department said it will brief the board and the public with concrete event plans and schedules once those details are finalized.